Sudan's military rulers and the main opposition alliance met at a Khartoum hotel on Wednesday to restart talks over who should lead Sudan toward elections.
Negotiationsbetween the two parties had collapsed a month ago, after members of thesecurity services raided a sit-in protest camp outside the defence ministry.
The opposition hasbeen staging protests to demand the military give up power since April, whenthe armed forces toppled President Omar al-Bashir, ending his 30-year ruleafter months of demonstrations.
The Forces ofFreedom and Change opposition alliance said it was prepared for direct talkswith the ruling Transitional Military Council over who should head a sovereigncouncil to lead Sudan toward elections.
The oppositionalliance said the talks, launched in response to a call for negotiations froman Ethiopian mediator, should last three days. It also called on the governmentto release political prisoners.
There appeared tobe progress towards that demand later on Wednesday, when state TV reported thatthe military council had pardoned 235 detained members of the Sudan LiberationMovement, a rebel group active in the western Darfur region.
The prisoners wouldbe released immediately unless they are wanted in connection with other legalproceedings, it said.
The two sides haveagreed on proposals presented by Ethiopian and African Union mediators to solvethe crisis, Mahmoud Dirir, the Ethiopian mediator, said on Tuesday.
But they stilldisagree over the structure of a sovereign council meant to lead the countryduring the transitional period, Dirir said.
